Force Protection Industries v. Protected Vehicles

DisputeSoft was engaged as a testifying expert in the matter of Force Protection Industries, Inc. v. Protected Vehicles, Inc., a case of trade secret theft involving two companies that produce armored vehicles for military use. Force Protection alleged that former executives stole confidential intellectual property before resigning from their positions and forming a rival company, Protected Vehicles.

Force Protection, a manufacturer of mine-resistant armored vehicles, accused Protected Vehicles of stealing trade secrets such as vehicle designs, supplier lists, cost estimates, and other marketing information. According to the lawsuit, theft of these materials was a violation of the former executives’ confidentiality agreements.

DisputeSoft performed a forensic analysis of the electronically stored information (ESI) contained on hard drives produced by Protected Vehicles. In his expert report, DisputeSoft intellectual property software expert Jeff Parmet found that over 5,000 files containing confidential trade secrets had been accessed and copied from the defendants’ computers just prior to their departure from Force Protection.

The parties reached a settlement in which Protected Vehicles agreed to delete all infringing files in its possession.

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